At the end of E3, the focus of discussion is firmly stuck on the Xbox One (or the Xbone as I have grown to call it), and the customer service train wreck it has become.

And that's fair enough - the rights of consumers and critical thought on just why we're willing to spend several hundred on gaming tech are discussions we as gaming enthusiasts should be having.

But there's still some other interesting discussion points going on behind the scenes. How Nintendo decided to eschew holding a physical conference entirely is definitely notable; but not too many people are discussing how the other games publishers are handling Nintendo's eccentricities.

EA is definitely at the centre of that. They released a statement back in May that they specifically weren't going to be announcing any games for Wii U hardware at E3.

It's anyone's guess about the specific reason as to why; but the official line is that their present development projects are using two new engines that they've designed – EA Sports Ignite and Frostbite 3. Said engines are built to work with PS4 and Xbone hardware, and that's it.

It would be almost reasonable, if they weren't also giving a lot of attention to FIFA being released on every present format under the sun (including mobile devices that are very much not going to be running the Ignite engine) except for the Wii U and 3DS.

The gaming equivalent of 'phoning it in'.

Personally what comes to mind is the fiasco with FIFA 12 on the Wii; and how it was a carbon copy of the last year's code, with the teams updated. More recently they're saying that they haven't completely turned their back on the Wii U – but it will need to sell more units before they'll commit to producing titles for it.

In a way, I can understand the struggles a publisher like EA must be facing with Nintendo hardware. Developing good software for the Wii U and 3DS must be notably difficult. Not because the technical specifications are hard to work with, but because the design on the systems themselves (touch screens, an unspoken emphasis on local multiplayer) demands careful thought for implementation.

Porting a game on or off a Nintendo system requires not just compatibility code, but some actual rebuilding - and such time and money efforts will be unattractive to companies like EA that are desperately struggling to hold financial stability in a quickly crumbling market. Still, it rings false that they feel unsure about the sales figures of Wii U units, when the Xbone and PS4 have, obviously, no figures whatsoever.

To contrast that with Ubisoft, one of the other 3rd party publishers that has the budget to hold a proper E3 conference, are still willing to back the Nintendo train, but from the sidelines. The fantastic-looking Rayman Legends and other titles they announced (Watch_Dogs, Just Dance 2014 and Assassin's Creed: Black Flag) are all set to feature on the Wii U, but it was never addressed directly.

The reason for that goes unsaid – though they are also concerned about Wii U sales – but I do wonder if Nintendo trying to distance its marketing schemes from the general gaming arms race, other companies are less willing to give them top billing.

This bears the question of how Nintendo might handle the E3s of following years. Budget-wise, they're definitely onto a winner by hosting a Nintendo Direct, with access to green screen and as many takes as necessary to get your speech right.

But I think if they're to make more traction with 3rd Party companies (and they need to - Nintendo's franchises are great but not invulnerable), they need to wade into the console wars once again. Give EA, Ubisoft and all the others a reason to hell the Wii U's name from the rooftops.